Top Stock Market News Today: Infosys, Tata Steel in Focus

The Indian stock market ended in the green, marking its second consecutive session of gains. At close, the Sensex rose by 241.86 points or 0.34 percent, reaching 71,106.96, while the Nifty gained 94.40 points or 0.44 percent, closing at 21,349.40.

All sectoral indices, except banks, closed positively, witnessing gains in auto, capital goods, healthcare, and oil & gas, each rising by 1 percent. Furthermore, Information Technology, metal, and realty sectors showed a 2 percent increase each.

Technical Analysis:

On the technical front, Nifty formed bullish candlestick pattern on the daily charts with slightly better volumes than previous day. On weekly scale, it has formed small body bearish candle with long lower shadow. The long-lower shadow indicates buying interest at lower level.

The critical support lies near the 20-Day Moving Average around 20,800. Medium term outlook continues to remain positive as the index maintains a position comfortably above crucial moving averages.

GIFT Nifty

Trends in the GIFT Nifty indicate a flat start for the broader index in India, with a gain of 25 points or 0.12 percent.

Global Markets

US Markets

US stocks gyrated to a mixed close on Friday as investors headed into the Christmas holiday weekend, having digested cooler-than-expected inflation data which formed bets for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts in the new year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 18.38 points, or 0.05 percent, to 37,385.97. The S&P 500 gained 7.88 points, or 0.17 percent, at 4,754.63. The Nasdaq Composite added 29.11 points, or 0.19 percent, at 14,992.97.

Asian Markets trade flat

On December 26, Asia-Pacific stock markets showed subdued activity, with Japan opening flat. Australia, New Zealand, and Hong Kong remained shut due to Boxing Day.

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Japan’s Nikkei 225 opened flat, holding at 33,245.95, while the broader Topix inched 0.10% lower. South Korea’s Kospi also traded around the flatline at the 2,600 level.

Stocks in the news

• Infosys: The global company has elected to terminate the Memorandum of Understanding with Infosys, and the parties will not be pursuing the Master Agreement. Infosys was supposed to provide enhanced digital experiences, along with modernisation and business operations services, leveraging Infosys platforms and AI solutions. The total client target spend over 15 years was estimated at $1.5 billion.
• Reliance Industries: The company and Walt Disney signed a non-binding term sheet to merge their Indian media operations.
• Tata Steel: The Tata Group firm said the shareholders will be meeting on January 25, 2024, to consider the scheme of amalgamation amongst Tata Steel and Indian Steel & Wire Products.
• Biocon: Subsidiary Biocon Biologics signed a distribution agreement with Sandoz. It has granted the company exclusive rights to promote, sell, and distribute Adalimumab BS for subcutaneous injection in Japan. The subsidiary has acquired the global biosimilars portfolio of Viatris, including Adalimumab. Fujifilm Kyowa Kirin Biologics Co. Ltd., the developer of the drug, has concluded an exclusive global marketing licence agreement with a Biocon Biologics Ltd. affiliate.
• Zydus Lifesciences: The US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) has concluded an inspection at Zydus Lifesciences’ API site at Changodar, Ahmedabad, with six observations. No data integrity-related observations were present, and there were no repeat observations from the previous inspection.
• ONGC: ONGC’s wholly-owned overseas arm ONGC Videsh plans to raise up to Rs 5,000 crore through non-convertible debentures (NCDs) for funding capex, refinancing and operations.

FII and DII data

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold shares worth Rs 2,828.94 crore. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought Rs 2,166.72 crore worth of stocks on December 22.

Bulk Deals

V-Guard Industries: Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund bought 35,00,000 shares at Rs 286

Antony Waste Holdings: The Miri Strategic Emerging Markets Fund LP bought 2,26,000 shares at Rs 492.23

Mahanagar Telecom Nigam: Elara India Opportunities Fund Limited sold 15,01,289 shares at Rs 32.7

Stock under F&O ban on NSE

The NSE has added National Aluminium Company to its F&O ban list for December 26. It retained Ashok Leyland, Balrampur Chini Mills, Delta Corp, Hindustan Copper, India Cements, and SAIL in the list.

Oil little changed as investors eye Middle East tensions, US rate cut

Oil prices were little changed on Tuesday as investors focused on geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and optimism the US Federal Reserve would soon start cutting interest rates, lifting global economic growth and fuel demand.

Brent crude futures fell 26 cents, or 0.3%, to $79.13 a barrel by 0115 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude was at $73.59 a barrel, up 3 cents.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this blog post is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as investment or trading advice. The author is not a financial advisor and does not have any professional qualifications in this area. The author does not guarantee the accuracy or completeness of the information provided. Any action you take based on the information in this blog post is done at your own risk. Please consult with a financial advisor before making any investment decisions.